Writing for Self-discovery.Yoga for flexibility.Music for self-expression and connection.One peaceful place to experience inner calm.Take some time to listen to your inner wisdom.

The Teachers

Debra Moffittis an award winning, American author who teaches writing, creativity, and spiritual practices. Debra draws on intuition and experience to guide participants to connect with their own inner wisdom during workshops. She lives in France.Mark Nepo says: "Debra is a gentle teacher who offers water for the spiritually thirsty." —Mark Nepo, author of Inside the Miracle and The Book of Awakening

﻿﻿Muni Natarajan﻿﻿﻿uses the ﻿yoga and meditation practices he learned from part of his lifetime in a Hindu monastery to teach the deeper meaning of yoga. His masterful lead into meditation using breath work and mantras makes it easy and simple. Muni was trained in India. ﻿Find out more here.﻿﻿﻿﻿Listen to Muni on meditation﻿﻿﻿.

Luca Giugnodraws on his travels to India to deepen work with music and sound. An accomplished jazz musician and music teacher, Luca will share his experience leading kirtan (Indian devotional music) for the past 20 years. Find out more here.

The Place

Located about 60 minutes from Lugano, Switzerland, the small village of Sonogno is nestled at the end of the Verzasca Valley. Spectacular waterfalls, a turquoise river, ancient stone bridges, and centuries old roadside shrines to Mother Mary or Saint Francis reveal the area's natural beauty and ancient history.

A bus will transfer you from the Lugano bus station to the Casa St. Angelo retreat center in Sonogno on Sunday, June 19th and take you back on the following Sunday, departing at noon. If you arrive outside of the scheduled bus transfer time, a few local buses make the journey to the end of the valley from Locarno or Bellinzona, Switzerland.

Travel to the Retreat:

The closest international airport is in Milan, Italy. Regular shuttle buses travel between Milan Malpensa Airport and Lugano or Bellinzona. Debra will provide you detailed information about the ideal ways for you to travel to the retreat depending on where you will be traveling from.

The Program

Sunday, ​June 19th, 2016

2:30 p.m. Transfer from Lugano Train Station by bus to Sonogno, Casa St. Angelo

4:00 p.m. Check in to rooms

6:00 p.m. Welcome & Introductions

7:00 p.m. Dinner

7:45 p.m. Opening Ceremony

General Daily Program: Monday, June 20th to Saturday, June 25th This is a sample of the general program which may change. It wlli generally include about 3 hours of daily yoga, 3 hours of writing, and music interwoven throughout the day and early evening..

7:30 - 9 a.m. Breakfast

9:00 a.m. Breathing and raising energy with Pranayama, chants, and music

9:30 - 12:30 Writing and Creative Practice

12:30 - 1:30 Lunch

Siesta/Nap Time

3 - 6 p.m. Afternoon yoga

There may also be nature hikes and excursions around Sonogno and opportunities to meet local villagers.

We'll close on Saturday evening with a special concert and closing ceremony.

About the teaching style: The workshops are highly interactive and non-sectarian. We aim to create a safe, fun, and sacred space for self-inquiry and to offer some practical tools to help you access your own inner wisdom and creative energy. We'll experiment with overlapping disciplines from "finding your voice" in writing to expression in music. We may anchor some experiences from the yoga sessions in writing to connect more deeply with the body, and/or explore emotional tones of words combined with musical phrases to understand vibration, sound and words, and also explore song writing. Muni may teach some art as well.

Sunday, June 26th, 2016

10:00 a.m. - Depart Sonogno by Bus to return to Lugano Train Station

About Casa St. Angelo, the retreat center. The retreat center is a clean and simple center with dormitory style rooms. Most rooms are large and have single beds and private showers. A few rooms have shared showers. There are some larger family-sized rooms as well. Food is vegetarian and prepared by a local chef who sources ingredients from nearby farms.

Who Will BenefitThe retreat is for anyone seeking to connect more deeply with nature and enjoy writing, yoga and music. Beginners are welcome as well as more advanced practitioners. Past retreats have attracted participants from all around the world and from a broad array of backgrounds including scientists, lawyers, people in healing professions, yoga teachers, artists, students, retirees, and people in transition looking for a new career. The retreat will provide an opportunity to step out of the ordinary rush into a pristine natural area of the Swiss-Italian Alps. In this silence and natural beauty, miracles of self-discovery abound.

No prior yoga, musical, or writing experience is necessary.

Bring an open heart and mind and give yourself a chance to experiment and enjoy your natural creativity in a beautiful environment with caring and gifted teachers. You'll be encouraged to try all of the sessions, yet there may be times when you wish to relax or explore nature, watch the river flow, or sit at a village cafe on your own. Let us know when you plan to slip away, then enjoy some time alone.

What You'll Gain from the Retreat:

a chance to relax and rejuvenate

time to reconnect with and rediscover what's essential to you.

a deeper understanding of the benefits of some practices like meditation and breath work

a more meaningful connection to yoga

an opportunity to tap into your creative energy and use it in writing or art

a chance to experiment with music as a way of self-expression

a space and encouragement to explore writing as a way to develop self-awareness

time to meet and make friends with people from around the world

an appreciation of the natural beauty of the Swiss Alps

time with experienced teachers

Give yourself a gift of space and time that you will cherish a lifetime.

Cost Includes 6 full days, 7 nights in a double room, meals from Sunday evening, June 19th to Sunday morning, June 26th, transfer to and from the Lugano train station, and workshops with Debra, Muni, and Luca.

Cancellation policy: A non-refundable deposit of $500 USD is due upon registration. If for any reason Participant decides to cancel attendance at the Retreat, he/she agrees to notify Debra Moffitt LLC by email as soon as possible at dm@debramoffitt.com. If cancellations are received by Debra Moffitt LLC before March 31st, Debra Moffitt LLC will refund the Participant 50% of the total retreat cost paid Debra Moffitt LLC within 30 days of notice of cancellation. After April 1st 2016, refunds will be made only if, another Participant commits in writing to fill your space and pays in full by or before June 1st, 2016. Otherwise, no refund by Debra Moffitt LLC to Participant will be made or due. This refund commitment by Debra Moffitt LLC is based on the requirements of non-refundable prepayment of services to the retreat hotels and administrative efforts to reserve your space.Waiver Form Required for Retreat Participation - Download here.

Please write or email dm@debramoffitt.com with questions. Debra will be happy to give you information about ways to travel to the area and sites to see.